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                  <p class="p_Heading1"><span class="f_Heading1">System Boundary</span></p>



  
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                <p class="p_TextIndentedL2"><img src="d_boundarybox.png" width="209" height="88" border="0" alt="d_BoundaryBox"></p>
<p class="p_BodyText"><span class="f_BodyText">A </span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;">System Boundary</span><span class="f_BodyText"> element signifies a classifier, such as a </span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="class.htm">Class</a></span><span class="f_BodyText">, </span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="component.htm">Component</a></span><span class="f_BodyText"> or </span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;">Sub-system</span><span class="f_BodyText">, to which the enclosed </span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="usecase.htm">Use Cases</a></span><span class="f_BodyText"> are applied. By depicting a boundary, its referenced classifier does not reflect ownership of the embodied Use Cases, but instead indicates usage.</span></p>
<p class="p_TextIndentedL2"><img src="systemboundary.png" width="315" height="180" border="0" alt="SystemBoundary"></p>
<p class="p_BodyText"><span class="f_BodyText">The following properties of a System Boundary can be set: the name, the border style, and the number of horizontal or vertical swim lanes.</span></p>
<p class="p_TextIndentedL2"><img src="systemboundaryproperties.png" width="404" height="160" border="0" alt="SystemBoundaryProperties"></p>
<p class="p_BodyText"><span class="f_BodyText">A System Boundary element can be marked as </span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;">Selectable</span><span class="f_BodyText">, using the element's context menu</span><span class="f_BodyText">. When not selectable, you can click within the System Boundary space without activating or selecting the Boundary itself. This is useful when you have many elements within the Boundary and the Boundary makes their selection difficult.</span></p>
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<td valign="bottom" width="955" bgcolor="#efeff7" style="width:955px; height:20px; background-color:#efeff7;"><p class="p_TiporNote" style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none;"><span class="f_TiporNote">Note:</span></p>
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<td width="955" bgcolor="#f7f7ff" style="width:955px; background-color:#f7f7ff;"><p class="p_TiporNoteText"><span class="f_TiporNoteText">A System Boundary can have an associated image that it displays instead of its default format. Use the </span><span class="f_MenuKeyField"><a href="createcustomdiagrambackgrou.htm">Appearance | Alternate Image</a></span><span class="f_TiporNoteText"> menu option to select an image.</span></p>
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<p class="p_SubHeadingL1"><span class="f_SubHeadingL1">Toolbox Icon</span></p>
<p class="p_TextIndentedL2"><img src="e_boundarybox.png" width="168" height="25" border="0" alt="e_BoundaryBox"></p>
<p class="p_SubHeadingL1"><span class="f_SubHeadingL1">OMG UML Specification</span></p>
<p class="p_BodyText"><span class="f_BodyText">The OMG UML specification (</span><span class="f_BodyText" style="font-style: italic;">UML Superstructure Specification, v2.1.1, p. 594</span><span class="f_BodyText">) states:</span></p>
<p class="p_OMGText"><span class="f_OMGText">If a subject (or system boundary) is displayed, the Use Case ellipse is visually located inside the system boundary rectangle. Note that this does not necessarily mean that the subject classifier owns the contained Use Cases, but merely that the Use Case applies to that classifier.</span></p>




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